‘Your morale must not dwindle’ — army chief tasks troops in Niger state after encounter with bandits

Taoreed Lagbaja, the chief of army staff, has asked troopers not to allow the death of their colleagues in an ambush by the insurgents in Niger state to dampen their morale. 

Lagbaja spoke on Tuesday at Nigeria Army’s operating base Erena in Shiroro LGA of Niger after being briefed on the current security situation by Bamidele Alabi, the command’s general officer. 

The troops were reportedly involved in a firefight with some bandits in the Zungeru area of the state during which some soldiers paid the supreme price.

TheCable also reported how the NAF’s MI-171 helicopter crashed on Monday while on a casualty evacuation mission at about 1 pm near Chukuba village in Shiroro LGA of the state.

In a statement, Edward Gabkwet, the spokesperson of NAF, said the crew and passengers of the ill-fated helicopter had been hospitalised.

Meanwhile, in a statement on Wednesday by Onyema Nwachukwu, army spokesperson, Lagbaja urged the soldiers to be more persistent in bringing the nation’s adversaries to their knees and restoring sanity in troubled areas. 

The army chief said the fight against insurgents and bandits is a just cause, in defence of Nigerians and the nation. 

“Protecting lives and defending your nation is the noblest service anyone can offer. You are therefore in the noble profession of arms and must not allow your morale to dwindle,” the statement reads.

“We must defeat the adversaries of our people and take back every inch of space where they are hibernating in our land.”

Lagbaja also assured the troops that he would do all within available resources to give the military personnel and their families the best welfare. 

He also directed the immediate reinforcement of the troops with additional combat enablers to enhance their operational effectiveness.